The Thoughts of You, Keep Haunting Me
by YesNoWaitMaybe
Summary: They meet in a book store, and depart, only knowing each others names. A mystery they are to the both of them. Each one hiding their true thoughts, and opinions. But when they're together, they spill what they've been dieing to say for a long time. ExB
1. Prologue

He stood next to the fridge, holding the door open with one hand, and stuffing food into his bag with the other. I watched him for two minutes, deciding what to ask, or what to do. I wanted to know what the hurry was, but I was too scared. I shook my head, knowing whatever was wrong my big brother would tell me. He always told me.

I backed away, but heard a crunch of a leaf. I must have stepped on it because it was all over my shoe. Any day my brother would ignore that, but today he seemed jittery and he turned around. He relaxed when he saw me, but he sighed quietly.

"Oh Bella," he walked slowly to me, the fridge door closing behind them. He knelt down near me.

"Em, what's going on?" I asked. Emmett smiled.

"Nothing gets past you, huh?" He smiled sadly. I shook my head.

"Nope." I said triumphantly. He sighed again.

"I'm going away for awhile." He said.

"What?" I asked. Did I hear him correctly?

"It's gonna be awhile, before you see me again." He said, avoiding my eyes.

"But… where will you sleep, eat?"

"I—I don't know. I just need to be away from Renee and Charlie. I just can't stand being around them." He struggled to say this, and I was surprised he did. Emmett said that when you call your parents by their first names, they feel threatened. When I said it, they threatened to take my T.V away. I went back to 'Mom and Dad'. They seemed to like that better.

"_Now?_" I said. Everything was happening so fast.

"Uh, yeah. I'm sorry I didn't tell you any earlier." He looked down at the ground, ashamed.

"When are you coming back?" I felt my lip quiver, but I bit it, doing my best to stay brave.

"Well, I'm sixteen now, um, when I turn eighteen. You'll be ten years old then."

"Two whole years?"

"Aren't you the quick math geek." He messes with my hair, and I push him away playfully. "It won't be that long. It will go by fast, I promise." Emmett was using the face that could convince me of anything. I sighed, knowing I couldn't stop him from doing anything he put his mind to.

"Okay, I guess. But you better be at our tree house exactly when you turn eighteen." Emmett smiled, and hugged me tight.

"I promise."


	2. But I Want That One

It was dark out, and the night was cold. Rosalie and I just stepped out of the movie theater, and both of us pulled our jacket closer to our skins. A couple blocks away, was Rosalie's convertible, so we headed in that direction.

"That movie was bogus." Rosalie said, kicking a rock into the darkness. I shrugged.

"I don't know. It kept _me_ awake." I said. I remembered screaming and hiding behind Rosalie when the scary parts came. I shuddered at the images of the movie in my mind, reminding myself why I never see scary movies. Next to me Rosalie pulled her head back, and laughed.

"Oh Bella, I completely forgot how fun it is to see you watch a scary movie. The movie wasn't even that good, but when I saw you, you made it ten times better." Rosalie was laughing hard, and I pushed her, which didn't affect her stance, at all.

"Well I'm glad I amused you." I said, with thick sarcasm.

"Bella, you're so cute. Why don't you have a boyfriend?" Rosalie said.

"You don't have one either. And besides, it's not like I need one." I said. And it was true, in a way. I was happy with my simple life, and needed no interference. Rosalie thought different. She pictured the perfect guy, waiting for him to reveal himself.

I looked at the line of stores as I walked down the street. We passed a clothing store, and then a coffee shop. At the end of the block was a small book store. My brows furrowed and I pointed to the small store, as I said, "Was that always there?"

She must have seen the excitement in my eyes, because she rolled hers, and let out a frustrated sigh. "Bella, I am so hungry, please don't think about going into another book store."

"It'll only be a moment. I have no more books to read, and there's this new book, that someone said is really good. Please, Rose?" I stuck out my bottom lip, and put my hands together. Rosalie rolled her eyes, again.

"Ten minutes, and I'm leaving you." I jumped up; a little too excited, and wrapped my arms around her.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Only in a great while, Rosalie would let you go into a store on her time. She shrugged me off.

"Whatever. I'm going to go get a coffee." She walked over to the coffee shop, and I scurried to find the bookstore.

I walked into the doorway, and saw a small area of children's books. There were pillows and stuffed animals splayed across the floor. I turned towards the romance novels and began my search.

I went down the whole aisle, noticing books I've read, and stuff I thought was pointless to read. I read the backs of the few books I picked out, and I looked up wondering where the cash register was. I then saw a flash of bronze hair, and I ran into something hard. My books slipped from my hand and I squealed before I tumbled to the ground.

I looked around me, and noticed not only my books were on the ground, but some very interesting books as well. I lifted my head to see bright green eyes staring back at me. Once I realized what I had done, I began my apologies.

"I am so sorry. I am such a klutz. I usually don't take people down with me, but I guess it's your lucky day." The guy chuckled musically.

"It's okay, it was my fault. I wasn't watching where I was going." He gathered all the books together and then he gave me mine.

I stood up, wobbling on the way. I clutched my books close to me, as I tried to balance my footing. When I finally regained my ability to stand, I looked up to see a very handsome man staring at me. It was hard to concentrate, but I managed to get out a few words.

"Well, it is very unlikely for me to trip and fall, and it being the fault of someone else. So I highly doubt it was your doing." I smiled.

"Oh really? Well, I'm just guessing from your incredible ability of balance, could you be the acrobat I saw last week?" He smiled too, and if I wasn't so giddy, and if he wasn't so sweet, then I would have thought we both were being ridiculous.

"I would show you my medals, but I threw them away, since twenty-second place, didn't really deserve to be on the shelf." The guy laughed abruptly, shaking slightly.

"You aren't that terrible in your standpoint. Remember, I was the one who knocked you down earlier. Sorry about that." This guy said, and I just shrugged, feeling my cheeks pink, slightly. I then caught a glimpse of his vest and noticed it had the stores name on the front.

"Do you work here?" I said pointing to the vest.

"Yes, I do. Do you want me to ring you up?" His voice sounded slightly disappointed, and he looked sad. I then stupidly realized that I ended the sweet conversation we were having. I wanted to get to know who this guy was, understand what he was doing here. But I knew keeping Rosalie waiting would not work out. I was lucky that the coffee shop line was long, and she would be occupied for the ten minutes she gave me.

"Sure." He turned around and led me to the front of the room. He stacked the pile of books on the counter, and walked around to the cash register. I gave the books to him and he placed them to his side.

He started scanning my books, looking up at me once and awhile. I had always admired book worms, and I began thinking of librarians and book clerks, when I hear myself say, "I always wanted to own a book store."

"Yeah? My grandfather owns this place, and he wants me to run it when I get older. I haven't promised him anything yet, though. I've been thinking about going into music, maybe being some piano teacher."

"You play piano?"

"Yeah."

"Are you good?" He shrugged his shoulders.

"I wouldn't know. People tell me that I have great talent though."

I've always wanted to play the piano. I just haven't the time or patients." We both laughed softly at the comment.

"I could teach you. It would help me in my teaching skills."

"I don't think you teaching me, would help you at all. It comes in one ear and out the other. And anyways, I don't want to learn, I want to know." We smiled at each other, when he just finished scanning the last book.

"Um… I have to go. My friend is waiting for me." I grabbed my books, paid him the money, and waved him goodbye.

"It was really nice meeting you." I said just before grabbing the door. I pushed it open, when I heard the man shout behind me, "What's your name?"

"Bella." I said without thinking. He nodded his head.

"I'm Edward." I smiled at the name, and left the shop. The wind blew at me, and I saw Rosalie, walking towards me with two cups of coffee in her hand. She handed me one, and I thanked her. We walked to the car, silently. Both our minds were occupied, and I was starving for any kind of food.

We got in the car and drove out and towards our apartment. I was about to remind her about my empty stomach, when she said it for me.

"I'm going to stop by Jerry's burger place, 'Kay?" I nodded, smiling. I thought of our friend Jerry, who was the manager of our favorite place. I looked out the window and saw the many trees pass by.

It was awhile before my mind finally gave up and drifted to Edward.

I imagined him standing tall, his bronze hair blowing in the wind. His green eyes penetrating me, and his mouth curved into a smile. I realized that when he smiled it was slightly crooked.

"Why are you smiling?" I heard Rosalie ask, suspiciously. I realized she was talking to me, when I noticed the corners of my lips were turned up. I blushed, thinking about Edward again. "And blushing? Spit it out Bella. Is it a boy?" I blushed further, and turned my face to the window.

"Oh my, Bella's got a boyfriend!" She was giggling when I punched her in the arm; which only damaged my fingers.

"I do not. I met him at the book store."

"Did you give him your phone number?"

"No…"

"What?" She looked at me like she had never seen me before. "Do you have jelly for brains? Did he ask you out?"

I thought about it, and in a way, he sort of did. "Kind of…"

"What do you mean, kind of?" She was looking at the road, but I could tell that if she wasn't driving, she would be glaring at me.

"He said he would give me piano lessons."

"What did you say?"

"I said no." I frowned at myself. I was such an idiot.

"Nice." She was being careful what to say, I could tell. After a long pause of silence, Rosalie said, "It's not that big of a deal, you'll find another one." My frown deepened. _But I want _that_ one_, I wanted to say.

"Yeah, I guess. Oh don't miss that exit!" I said pointing. Rosalie swerved the car, and she was laughing with joy. Her blonde hair blew in the wind, and her laugh turned slightly hysterical. I grabbed hold of the seat, as Rosalie sped all the way to the hamburger place.

We pulled into the parking lot, and Rosalie stopped the car where we always did. I hopped out, my stomach rumbling for food, and practically ran for the taste of burgers and fries. Rosalie giggled, but refused to run, since she was wearing high heels. I let her catch up, and we walked in together, both taking in the smell.

"Hey girls!" Our friend Jerry said from the front. "Now I know you didn't come down here to get a burger, but to see your best pal, Jerry. Am I right?" Jerry was older than us both, and was a big man full of joy. I always thought of him as my older brother, since I didn't have one anymore.

"Oh, definitely. But since we're here, maybe you could get us something to eat?" Rosalie winked, and Jerry bellowed with laughter.

"That was a good one. It's on me. You girls didn't all of a sudden change your mind on your favorite order, did ya?" We shook our heads. "Okay." He shouted behind his self for two number ones, two milk shakes, and a large box of French fries. I walked over to Jerry.

"Jerry that was so sweet of you. But you know how I feel about you paying for our dinner." I said. Jerry just smiled.

"Oh Bella, when will you realize, you ain't gonna stop me from paying. In fact, I love seeing you squirm when I offer." He smiled and walked in the back.

I sighed, knowing that anything I said was useless. I walked to Rosalie, who had already picked our booth. I sat down, and she looked at me.

"So, I was thinking. There is this guy that asked me to go to this really fancy place, and he has this friend that saw you with me and—" I saw where this was going, and I pulled my hand up to stop her.

"No." She pouted for a moment, and I just stared at her. I've known her for so long, that I didn't even hesitate at any of her puppy dog faces.

"But I don't like going alone. What if this guy is terrible, and uninteresting? I would want you to be there, so I won't be bored." I rolled my eyes.

"Whatever Rosalie, I refuse to go. Besides, you should know that this guy won't bore you to death." Rosalie shrugged the conversation off. I heard Jerry call our number, and I went to go get our food, thanked Jerry, and walked back to sit down. I gave Rosalie her sandwich, which had no mayo and little onions. Mine had everything on it, and I had a chocolate shake to the side. We put the French fries in a pile in the middle, so we could share.

"You would have gone if Emmett said you should." Rosalie said. I sighed, and rolled my eyes.

"Rosalie, nothing could make me want to go, especially Emmett." I said grumpily, taking a bit out of my hamburger.

"I thought we were over this?" She said sensing my anger. "Emmett, not coming back, didn't have anything to do with you." She said, dipping her French fry into an unknown dip. Maybe barbeque sauce?

"I know, but why did he leave me wondering? I spent forever trying to put together why he didn't come. You were there; I mean could he have warned me?"

"I know, and I totally reason with you. But you gotta let this go." I nodded my head.

"Okay, I know. I'm working on it." We go silent, eating our food. Rosalie speaks, and I am thankful for her chatter mouth.

"So back to the double date, you in?" She looked at me expectantly, and I just shook my head laughing. I was glad to talk about something other than Emmett.

"Never in a million years." I said. Rosalie pouted, and we finished eating, while talking about other things.

When we left, my head was swirling with thoughts. We didn't turn on the radio, so we sat in silence. We didn't talk all the way to the apartment; I was so tired. When we got in, I collapsed on the couch. I heard Rosalie laugh, and mumble something about, me staying there for the night, since she wasn't going to carry me.

I was barely listening, and I drifted off to a dreamless sleep.


	3. Rock, Paper, Scissors

I woke up to the shuffling of curtains and bright light. I covered my head with my pillow, and groaned.

"Wake up Bella." Rosalie was in my ear, and I felt my blankets being pulled from my legs, and the heat that was surrounding me, disappeared.

"No. I wanna sleep." Rosalie laughed.

"Well that's too bad. We have to go to work. Hurry up, get dressed." She left the living room, and I watched her go to her bedroom. I got up, groaning, and left to find my room. When I went in, I pulled a red t-shirt out of my closet, then a pair of dark blue jeans. I got dressed quickly, and I looked at the clock, seeing I had another hour till it was time for work to begin. I brushed my teeth, and started my way, to the front door.

I found Rosalie flipping through the channels, looking totally uninterested. When she saw me come she turned off the TV and stood up.

"Let's go." I followed her out the door, and together we went down the hall and to the elevator.

During the elevator ride we discussed what to eat for breakfast.

"I think we should get a donut." I said. Rosalie made a disgusting face.

"No, remember, I'm trying this new diet?" I gave her a confused look.

"I thought you gave up, since your new diet didn't consist of any pizza?" She seemed to have been thinking for a while.

"Well… That may be true, but maybe I should do that whole diet thing again. I mean I lost two pounds that week." I rolled my eyes.

"Can you start that tomorrow? I really want a donut." The elevator ding sang and we stepped out of it.

"Fine. But next week I choose where we eat." I frowned.

We walked to her car, silently. I got in and turned on the radio. Debussy was playing Clair de lune. I squealed in excitement.

"Ugh, you are so obsessed. This is not _that_ good of a song." Rosalie said, getting into the car. We drove to the donut shop, and I readied my purse, since it was my turn to pay.

We drove into the empty parking lot, and found a spot next to a red jeep. Rosalie got out of the car, and looked at the jeep. I got out and stood next to her.

"Nice car." Rosalie gestured to the jeep. I shrugged.

"I guess." We walked into the shop, and I am starving. I run up to Jessica, the cashier, and I tell her a chocolate donut.

"I'll just have a coffee." Rosalie said. Jessica picked a chocolate donut out for me, after she got Rosalie a cup of coffee. She rung us up, and I paid her the money.

"No eating in my car." Rosalie said. I rolled my eyes.

"I know, I know. But if it was my old truck, then I would be able to eat in it all I wanted." I smiled.

"You and that truck were too attached." Rosalie said. We were walking back to the car.

"I was a little too heartbroken when the truck broke down." I said, admittedly.

"Yes, you were. It was pathetic."

"Shut up." I finished my donut, and we were off to work at Target.

*"Okay, out of the blonde, Asian, and the African dude, who is the cutest?" Rosalie asked me. I rolled my eyes, as I stacked clothing onto the racks.

"Rosalie, what did I tell you about how I feel when you rank men?" I said disapprovingly.

"We aren't ranking them, we are comparing them." Rosalie said smartly. She was folding the clothes that were thrown everywhere.

"Okay then, the Asian." I said. "And that's the last group I am _comparing_." Rosalie laughed.

We finished folding the last pile of clothing and I brushed my hands off, looking for a confused costumer, or one that was looking around for the bathrooms.

"Hey, look over there," Rosalie brushed her hands across my arm to get my attention, and she nodded her head towards a tall man. He was standing over several different bouquets of flowers, rubbing his rough chin, and concentrating extremely hard.

"He's been standing there for_ever. _He needs help." She smiled. She knew I didn't like talking to people. She didn't like it much either.

"Rock, paper, scissors," I said simply. She nodded her head. I stuck out my hand, already knowing what I wanted to do.

"One, two, three…" As my hand showed scissors, I knew I had lost even before she showed rock.

"Yeah, baby!" Rosalie said, slapping her hands together, and doing a short victory dance.

"You know, it's not that bad. I mean this is our job." I said walking toward the confused boy. "We should be used to this."

As I got closer to him, I readied myself to speak.

"Hello sir, can I help you?" He jumped slightly, but he recovered quickly.

"Um, I don't know." I smiled as he ruffled his hands through his hair, clearly nervous. "It's just this girl, and we've been friends forever. I really like her."

"Well, if you want to tell her, which I can easily see that you do, all that matters are the words. The flowers just get you started. If you say you've been friends with her forever, I have a good feeling that you know what she would like." He nodded.

"Thanks. You know, I like you, what's your name?"

"Bella." I said, slightly confused with his sudden spark of attention toward my advise, as others toss it to the ground, and walk away.

"The name's Ben. My friend was helping me, but left to go the bathroom." He said.

"Well, I got to…" He interrupted me with a loud yell.

"Hey Edward! Over here." He smiled at the boy with striking bronze hair, and gestured to me. "He just loves it when I embarrass him in public." He was laughing, and I could just about guess he was being sarcastic. Edward walked over to us, and I noticed he wore a light tint of blush. However that wasn't the only thing I noticed. He was familiar. Beyond familiar. He was the guy I met at the book store. I immediately felt my face get hot. This was going to be interesting.

"Hey, Edward, I'd like you to meet my new friend, Bella." Ben said, putting a faint arm around my shoulders.

"Hi," Edward said, smiling, and I instantly knew he remembered me. That was a good sign, right?

"Hi." I said, matching his tone. Ben looked at Edward, then at me, and back at Edward with a confused look.

"Am I missing something here? Do you two know each other?" My cheeks burned with no explanation, and Edward smiled at me, then at Ben.

"We met at the bookstore." Edward said simply.

"Oh," Ben stretched this word out, as if signaling that he understood what Edward was talking about. Did this mysterious Edward talk about our short encounter? Awkwardness settled in the air, and I saw Rosalie come up from behind me.

"Is everyone doing okay here?" She was feigning worrisome, but I saw right through her. However, I couldn't blame her for being interested. Here we were, in the middle of Target making a scene, and Rosalie had just now come into the situation. I was surprised she made it this long.

"We were just talking." Ben said, slightly intimidated by her. Rosalie enjoyed this, but didn't show it.

"Oh okay, but I'm going to have to fire her and kick you two out of the store if you don't disperse." Ben and Edward looked at each other than at Rosalie. They were clearly confused. I scowled at Rosalie, and turned to the guys.

"She's just kidding." I said, slightly embarrassed. "She's my best friend Rosalie."

"Hey." They both lifted their hands in attempt to wave, but they gave up, realizing there was no point.

"I'm Ben. This is Edward." Rosalie nodded, studying the two.

"Okay, I am not trying to sound pushy, but, if you guy's really want to talk, I could set this group up, and you can go to this really fancy restaurant. Do you know any other girl you could bring?" Rosalie asked the boy's. Ben smiled, looked at the flowers, and nodded his head as he glanced back up at us.

"I think I do."

"Perfect." After a few minutes of saying goodbye, and Rosalie making absolute sure she got both of the guy's numbers, I grabbed Rosalie by the arm, and glared.

"What was that about?" I asked, looking up at her tall frame. She smiled and she gave a weird laugh that involved her breathing out of her nose.

"That was how you set a date." She said, smirking. "Something you have no idea how to do." I frowned at her total rightness. "Anyways, I could totally see that you guy's would never go out. I was going to go with you, but, you don't need someone there to hold your hand."

"Yes I _do_." She giggled abruptly, and I frowned.

"Bella, be a big girl." I crossed my arms, and pouted. She smiled.

"Rose, remember that guy from the library?" I asked her.

"From last night?" She asked, confused.

"Yeah."

"What about him?" She looked at me interested.

"That guy—the one with reddish brown hair—that was him." Her eyes widened, and she lifted her hands into the air, and stared at the ceiling.

"It's fate, Bella." She looked back at me, and I couldn't help but explode with giggles.

"Get back to work, Rosalie."


	4. He Remebered My Name

Chapter 3

It had been a whole of one day, six hours and thirty eight minutes, before Edward called. Of course, I was panicked, especially since Rosalie was on her date. I had no one for help. As I picked up the phone, I noticed I was slightly shaking. I shook my head disappointed. I pulled the phone to my ear, and took a deep breath. He was just another person. (Who was insanely gorgeous, and had incredible green eyes.)

"Hello?" I said into the phone.

"Um, hi. Is this Bella?" He remembered my _name_. I felt goose bumps run along my arm. I bit down on my lip, calming myself.

"Yes, this is her. Who is this?" Of course I knew who this was. The soft charming voice was unforgettable.

"I'm Edward; the one from the bookstore, and Target." He sounded intense, and nervous; like I would forget him in one day and six hours.

"Oh right, yeah. I'm sorry about my friend Rosalie. She can be a bit bossy." I said this, just in case he didn't really want to go. I didn't want to make him feel like he had to go. But I totally want him to.

"It was okay. I didn't mind. She did scare Ben half to death, though." I laughed into the phone.

"Oh, yeah, how did it go with Ben and—who were those flowers for?"

"Angela? She turned him down." He seemed slightly sad. "I guess she just wants to be friends."

"That's too bad." I said. Then I realized that Ben might have been planning to take her. "Does Ben have a date?"

"No, he doesn't. That's what I called to talk about." He's going to cancel the date. He doesn't want to go, unless his friend is there. "Would you mind if we just went together, alone?"

"Yeah, totally." I said a little too fast and I smiled hugely to myself.

"Great. So where are we going?"

"Oh, um, Rosalie wrote it down somewhere…." I walked around, searching the apartment. "Ah! Here it is." I found it on the counter, next to the sink. "Uh, La Bella Italiana."

"Oh, I know where that is. So I'll meet you there?" He said.

"Sure. Come at, seven-thirty Friday." As I hung up the phone, I sank into realization.

"It's going to be just me and him; how am I even going to form a sentence?" I fell back onto the couch, groaning and waiting for Rosalie to show.

I found the hard sofa, particularly comfy, and I drifted off to sleep, the last thing in my mind being Edward.

I woke up an hour later, smelling spaghetti and hearing Rosalie's sweet voice singing an old 80's song. I supported myself with my elbows, and peaked through squinted eyes. I took another smell of the pasta, and realized I was extremely hungry. Rosalie peaked over at me, and smiled.

"Good morning sleepy head." I woke up and retook in the clock. I fell asleep at ten. It was eleven.

"How long have I've been out?" My bewildered expression seemed to amuse her.

"About twelve hours." My mouth dropped.

"Wait, what about work?" I scrambled to my feet, looking for my bedroom, which seemed very hard to find.

"I called, and asked for a day off." I stared at her, not believing her at all.

"What? Why?" I gazed at her, no telling what my face looked like.

"You haven't taken one day off in like—"

"Three years." I finished for her. "I was trying to beat our Target's record. I was one year away." I held up one finger as if to show her how little I was away from becoming the best attended Target worker.

"Bella, are you kidding me?" Then she gave me a look that matched every word she just spoke. I was being a complete idiot.

"But, but…" There was nothing to say. I sulked back onto the couch waiting for the spaghetti.

"Here you go." Rosalie had finished cooking and gave me a plate.

"Thank you." She came to sit next to me on the couch.

"So, how was your date with…?" I started, not knowing her date's name.  
"Jason. It was, lame." She stuck her fork into her spaghetti a little too harshly.

"Oh."

"He asked me if I could pay for the dinner." My eyes widened. That boy must have been extremely courageous.

"What did you do?" I asked, expecting the worst.

"Nothing; I just paid for the dinner." I didn't believe her for a second. Seeing my face, she sighed, telling me the truth. "And I left him at the restaurant." I reacted slowly, shaking my head disappointed. I figured the only possibility, considering that Jason picked her up in his car.

"Highjack the car?" I said, too casually. She smiled brightly.

"Yeah."

"Edward called." I said, before the awkward silence could set in.

"Really? What'd he say?"

"Ben and Angela can't make it. She rejected him." I said, sadly.

"Awe, that's too bad. He seemed really love stricken by her." She said, filling her mouth with an embarrassing amount of spaghetti. She laughed spitting out sauce.

"Rose!" I said, dodging the spit and sauce.

"Sorry." She went to go get a rag, and as she cleaned it off of me, and the leather couch, I continued.

"And anyways, Edward still wants to go." She smiled.

"That's good. It must mean he really likes you."

"I guess." She sat down, and there was a pause of silence, as both of our minds, went off to two different worlds. After awhile, Rosalie shook herself out of her spacing out.

"We need to get out."

Some would agree that tennis is something fun, and way better than being cooped up in a house. Not me. I was prepared to complain, and brought a book. Fortunately, Rosalie knew better, and called some of her friends, and let me walk around the park.

I was waiting to walk by an empty bench, which was not hard to find at all. I sat down on a wooden seat, and pulled my book out of my bag. I propped it on my knee, and began my read. About ten pages into my book, I heard my name being whispered. I peaked up from my book, but saw no one. Then a giggle rang in the air; but it was so faint, I thought I was imagining it. I went back to my book.

"Bella." I heard the whisper again. I put my book down on my lap, and looked around. No one was there. I huffed out a puff of air.

"Boo!" Behind me, I felt something grab my shoulders. I jumped off the bench, and screamed. I heard my book fall to the ground, but I had already figured out that someone had scared me, on purpose. I grabbed my book, with a bit of furiousness.

"What is wrong with—" I stopped in the middle of my words, as I looked up at the person, who had supposedly scared me. Long dark hair, flowed past his shoulders. His dark tan skin, and mischievous smile, made me squeal with joy.

"Jacob!" I gave him a quick hug, smiling happily. I took my book and slapped it against his arm. "What are you doing here?" I said, smiling.

"I came to see you." He said, smiling. "And Rosalie…" He smiled, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Jacob, that is disgusting." He laughed, and I smiled, showing him that I knew he was joking.

"I can't believe you're here! This is going to be so much fun." I said. "I have to show you around."

For the rest of the day, Jacob and I spent our time getting to know one another, all over again. We went to the market, had a chocolate snack and we talked nonstop.

"So, is there anyone in your interest?" I asked him. He shrugged his shoulders.

"Back home, the only girl I ever dated was Maria. She hates me now." I gave him a strange look to his sadness.

"Why?" I asked.

"I guess I didn't dump her properly? I don't know." I nodded my head showing my sympathy.

"Well, you'll find someone. What are you, eighteen?"

"Nineteen."

"Sorry. But you have a lot of years ahead of you. In no time, you'll be married and have three kids." He smiled, and it made me feel better to know that he was a bit happier.

"So, what about you, Bella; anyone catch your eye?" Immediately, my cheeks turned red. Jacob smiled. "Of course. What's his name?"

"I am not telling you, until I know that we actually like each other." Jacob rolled his eyes.

"Anyways, I might stay here if I like it." He said. My eyes widened.

"Really? That's great." I pulled him in for a hug.

"So, how do you like California, so far?" I asked him.

"I don't know. There's this annoying brunette following me, and it's kind of hard to enjoy anything." He smiled, and looked at me. My mouth dropped, and I glared at Jacob. He laughed.

"That is so mean." I gave him a sour face and turned around, ready to walk away.

"Hey, Bella, don't take it like that." He grabbed my arm, and spun me around. "I'm sorry." He gave me a cheeky smile. I sighed. "Can I get smile?" I looked at him, so not going to smile. "Please?"

"No." I said. He started tickling me, and I giggled.

"Fine." I fake smiled, showing every tooth.

"Thank you." He said arrogantly.

* * *

A/N: Please review. I will try my best to post the next chapter as fast as possible. Of course, it would help if I had some encouraging reviews... (nudge, nudge)


	5. My Question Didn't Go So Far

Chapter 4

I set my outfit on my bed that took forever to pull together. I felt like Rosalie, not knowing what to wear. I definitely had mixed feelings for my reactions, toward this boy. I was a bit giddy with anticipation, and never in my life felt this way. It was either a good or a bad feeling, and I had yet to make my decision. I guess all that mattered was my happiness, right? Confused, I put my thoughts aside, and examined my carefully chosen outfit. It supposedly was a really fancy restaurant, and so I hoped my blue long sleeved sweater didn't stand out to badly. And I decided a pair of dark jeans would be fine.

I walked into the bathroom, realizing I still had curlers in my hair. I pulled them out, revealing big, long dark curls, and I let them rest on my shoulders. Staring into the mirror, I contemplated applying makeup. About ten minutes passed, and shook my head, not wanting myself to go too far to impress a guy.

I went into my room and changed. I caught myself in the mirror, and shrugged, deciding it would have to do. Looking at the clock, I was just on time. I walked out, but saw Edward coming up the stairs. He looked gorgeous. His hair was ruffled, and all out of place. He wore a buttoned down shirt that held tightly to his skin, showing his muscles. I looked away, embarrassed. Then I looked back up, when I felt the blush of my cheeks cool.

"I thought we were going to meet at the restaurant?" I asked, confused. He smiled a crooked smile.

"Well, I guess I just wanted to. I asked Rosalie where you lived, and I was hoping you wouldn't mind, if I showed up, unexpectedly." He said, looking at me, waiting for my reaction. I smiled.

"Thanks." His white teeth appeared as his lips parted to smile. It was silent for two terribly long seconds. "Well I'm ready to go." He nodded, and waited for me to walk in front of him.

The walk was silent. When we stood in the elevator, he commented on how the elevator seemed bigger than most elevators. I nodded, agreeing, and noticed, his cheeks were slightly pink with embarrassment.

Outside, the night air was cool, and the parking lot was empty, except for Rosalie's red convertible, a yellow beetle, and a silver Volvo. Now usually I don't judge people by cars, but if Edward's car was the yellow beetle, I was going to have to never see him again. Thankfully, he turned in the direction of the silver Volvo. He opened the door for me, and I stepped in, feeling comfortable.

Once he got into his seat, and pulled out of the drive way, my mind was running for a good ten minutes, trying to come up with something to talk about.

"So, about Ben; how long have you guy's been friends?" I asked, finally.

"Um, about six years? We were friends in college. But him and Angela go back fifteen, twenty years." He said, nodding to the road.

"That's cool." Another silence. My question didn't go so far.

"How about you and Rosalie? You guy's seem really close." He said, still looking at the road. I was happy to fill the air with words.

"We were neighborhood friends. We lived in a little town in Forks, Washington." I said, remembering the day we met. It didn't go so well.

"Oh, yeah? My parents—no I should say my friends—lived down there." He said.

"What were their names?" I wondered if I would be able to remember them.  
"Carlisle and Esme." He said, pulling his car into a parking lot.

"I know who they are!" I said, picturing them in a big house. Esme always seemed to be making dinner, and Carlisle sat at his desk, writing. "They were so nice." They always donated a great deal of money to the town.

"Yeah, they are." He got out of the car, and I was about to follow him, when he zoomed around the car, and caught the door.

Continuing our conversation, as we walked to the doors, I asked about them. "So, how do you know Carlisle and Esme?"

"Their family friends." We made it through the doors, and to the lady that stood at the front desk.

"Oh." Was all I could say.

"Hi, can I help you?" A short, blonde perky girl asked us.

"Hale residents, please." She looked at her computer for a second, then back up. She smiled, and said,

"If you could follow Jenna," She pointed to a girl, who waved at us. "She will take you to your seats."

As we followed Jenna, she sat us down at a booth.

"Your waitress will be with you shortly." She said.

"Edward," His name rolled off my tongue. "How is your book store going?"

"Great. I just discovered that there is a basement to the store." He said. I laughed.

"How are you going to use it?" I asked, taking a sip of water.

"Um, I'm not sure. I think my grandfather is still deciding." He said. I nodded, remembering his grandfather owned the store. It was quiet, and I met Edward's eyes. He stared at me, and his emerald green eyes seemed to glimmer and shine. The moment was so perfect, and if our waitress hadn't interrupted, I wouldn't know how long we would go on for.

"Hello, I'm Ashley and I will be your server for today. May I get you two some drinks?" She was smiling, but I noticed how she directed her body to Edward.

"Water's fine." He said, not noticing the attention. He looked at me. "You?" he asked me.

"A coke." It sounded like a question. The girl smiled.

"I will be back to take your order." When she was gone, Edward, smiled, and he seemed to be thinking of something to say. I was doing that as well, but he beat me to it.

"So, we both know what we do for a living… what do you do when your not at work?" Edward asked. I bit my lip, trying to think.

"Read?" I didn't do much. He chuckled.

"I don't do much either." He said, smiling to himself. I had a panic attack, thinking he could read minds. Then I inwardly laughed at myself, realizing that I was being silly.

"So what are you getting?" I asked.

"I think I'm going to get a burger." He said looking at the menu.

"How about you?" I looked at the menu. It was a tie between the ravioli, and a burger. But once Edward said what he wanted, I eliminated the burger at once. I couldn't explain why, but I did. "The ravioli dish." I took a sip of my coke.

"So, did you live here in high school?" I asked.

"Actually I didn't. I lived in Chicago for, twenty-two years. Almost seems like my whole life. I came here two years ago, trying to start a new one."

"Why would you want to do that?"

"What?" He asked confused. But before I could explain to him what I meant, Jenna came with my coke and a pitcher to fill Edward's water.

"What can I get you two?" She asked, pulling out her notebook. Edward told her what we wanted, and she walked away.

"So you lived in Chicago. What made you choose to come live in California?" I asked.

"Uh, Ben came here with Angela, and they persuaded me over time to come and live with them. My parents weren't too happy with the idea, but they let me go. I was going to go anyways, but I let them have the satisfaction of thinking that their words had an effect on whether I would go or not." I nodded my head, and listened intently.

Our conversation lifted from there, and we talked nonstop. I learned a lot about him, and I couldn't stop asking him questions. I could tell he wanted to get to know me, but I didn't want to talk about me. I wanted to talk about him. He was much more interesting than I would ever be. Our food came in between our long conversation, but our eyes never left each other, even as we thanked the waitress. She seemed a bit angry, but she hid it well.

I dodged the conversation about Emmett, not ready to talk about him, and asked about him being a pianist. It was my favorite topic, and that alone, took up a fourth of our whole night.

"You could play when you were seven?" I asked, amazed. He shrugged, looking embarrassed.

"Yeah, I guess. It's not that big of a deal."

"You must be really good. I would love to hear you play sometime."

"Okay." There was one last bite of cake on my plate, and I ate it, feeling that our night was at its end. I heard Edward sigh, a tired sigh. We sat in a comfortable silence for a while. He asked our waitress for the check, and we fell back into the silence.

"So I guess we better get going." Edward broke the quietness, again. I nodded my head, standing up.

When we were leaving, and walking to his car, I thought of all the things I didn't know about him. I didn't think I would ever have enough time to ask him all I wanted to know.

In the car, I kept quiet, savoring just being next to him. He turned on his cd player, and Debussy was on. I smiled.

"This is my favorite of his." I said, closing my eyes, and listening to the music. It was Claire de Lune. A very peaceful song.

"You know this guy?" I nodded my head. I would have explained to him how I knew, but I was so into the music, I thought I would fall asleep. After awhile I think I did. I think I was half asleep, though because I felt Edward carry me. I wanted to tell him I was fine, but I clearly wasn't. I was extremely tired. Slowly I drifted off to sleep, in his arms.

In the morning I woke in my bed, with my pajamas on. Rosalie probably dressed me, when I got home. Then I remembered what happened. I sat up, and pulled my pillow out from under my head. I brought it up to my face, and smacked myself with it.

"I…" Another smack. "Am…" Once again, I hit myself with the pillow. "Such…" One last time, and I made sure it was a good one. "An idiot." The pillow landed in my lap, and I let my head fall into it. I groaned. Then I heard a muffled girls voice, and I guessed it to be Rosalie. I didn't wonder who she was talking to, until I heard a male's voice. I lifted my head, and peaked through my cracked door.

I saw the back of a guy's head, with reddish brown hair. I gasped.

"Edward." I whispered. I got out of my bed, stumbling on the way, and found my closet.

"Bella, you up?" I froze. "Come get some breakfast." I was wearing short, short shorts, and a tank top. I glared in the direction of the kitchen, knowing exactly who put me up to this.

"I'm going to get dressed real quick." I said, opening my closet door, and pulling out a t-shirt and jeans.

"No need to, Bella. You must be hungry." Rosalie's voice held an amused tone, I wasn't quite pleased with.

I smelt eggs, and bacon. My stomach growled. I _was_ hungry. I sighed. No need to argue, or later on Rosalie will find another way to embarrass me. I dropped my clothes, defeated, and walked out of my bedroom, and into the hall, following the smell.

"Morning Bella. Edward stayed over." Rosalie said, sizzling bacon. I saw Edward scrambling some eggs, and he looked away, embarrassed by what Rosalie said.

"Here let me help you." I said, walking over to Edward, reaching for the spatula. He pulled it away from me.

"I got it. Growing up the only thing I knew to do in the kitchen was scramble eggs." He was just finishing, so I went around the corner, and found three plates in the cupboard. I pulled out three glasses, and poured orange juice into them. I sat down, and Rosalie and Edward had finished and started dishing up, when I handed them their plates. Quietly, we filled our plates, and we sat on the stools that were under the counter.

"So, Edward why did you stay?" I noticed how that could be taken in a mean way so, I tried to make it like I was interested, not annoyed. "I mean, wouldn't you rather sleep in your own bed, then on our couch."

"Actually, if I had gone home early, then I would be sure to get picked on by Ben and Angela." Both Rosalie and I laughed at the comment. Edward looked flushed. I took a bite out of the eggs, and surprisingly I liked them. I gave Edward two thumbs up for the eggs. I didn't say anything about the bacon, but it was a bit burnt. Rosalie always over cooks food. I mean not so much so you can't eat it, because I do, but you can taste it.

"So I'm off with my new boyfriend." Rosalie said once she finished her breakfast. I felt my eyes widen.

"Really? That is great. Tell me all about him later." I said. She was smiling ear to ear.

"Okay." She left. I put my plate in the sink, sand began to scrub, using a sponge. Edward came over, and grabbed a sponge too, and helped me.

"You don't need to help." I said, but it wasn't convincing at all. I did need a bit of help.

"It's okay. I want to help." Together we stood, enjoying the peace, and our company. I imagined this, ten years from now, us still together, washing dishes. I always wanted a dishwasher, but now, I began to think that I didn't need one. This felt a lot better. Edward, only a few steps from me, looking absolutely gorgeous in the sunlight, was washing dishes with me. He didn't have to, but he didn't seem to mind. I broke my thoughts, and probably his with a very risky question.

"So where are we going today?" I was implying a lot. I was saying I wanted to see him, which is good, but I was also, in a way trapping him into spending time with me. If he didn't want to see me, and he was as nice as he seemed to be, he would probably start meeting me trying to figure out a way to let me down gently. While I was having my internal panic attack, I surprisingly heard Edward give a response, I certainly did not expect.

"Oh, no, no, no. You may look all innocent, asking that simple question, but I know how this is gonna go."

"Huh?" I was definitely confused.

"I'm not having it. It was question after question last night. Not this time. It's my turn." He placed the plate on the rack, forcefully, but not too hard, as if it made his statement much stronger. I raised both my eyebrows, not believing a word he just said.

"Oh really?" I asked, giving him a skeptical look.

"Ah! Another question." I rolled my eyes, but laughed. This was going to be an interesting day, but I was sure to enjoy it.


	6. They Get Funnier and Funnier Every Year

Chapter 5

Edward and I spent everyday, of the next three weeks with each other. After work, he'd pick me up, and he would take me wherever he planned for us to go. We drove for an hour, and he asked me question after question. First they were simple, like my favorite color, or favorite book. He slowly progressed into personal questions, like if I'd ever had a boyfriend, or fell in love. He was surprised to hear that I had not once ever felt that way about someone. But then he asked about my family, and taking a deep breath, I told him. He was going to have to hear it sometime.

"When I was eight, my brother Emmett, left. He couldn't take the fighting with my parents. He promised to be back, but he never came. Then later on, my mother left—she couldn't take the fighting either—and took me with her. We came to Phoenix, Arizona, and later my mom got over Charlie, my dad, and met Phil. She seemed pretty happy with him." I sighed. "Then when I turned seventeen, when Phil was moving around, I decided that I needed to go visit Charlie."

"Why?" Edward looked confused. "Do you like Phil?"

"No, I like Phil. He may be a bit young, but he's okay."

"Then why…?" I sighed again. Why was I telling someone about my pitiful life? And why did Edward care so much? I stared at him, as he tried to understand what I was saying.

"Well, Renee wanted to move around with Phil, and I was holding her back." I said simply. Edward still looked confused.

"But that seems unfair." He said after awhile. I shrugged.

"And?" I looked at him, waiting for his answer. He shrugged. "Edward, have you ever heard, 'life's not fair'?" he laughed.

"Once or twice." I noticed it was so easy to talk to him. I settled back into my chair, ready for the rest of the ride. For the following of the day, he asked me questions, and fighting through my blush, I answered them. He promised only two days of interrogation, and after that, we spent our days in the park, once in a fancy restaurant—until he found I was a pain to spend money on—and mostly at my apartment.

One day, flipping through my cds, Edward suggested if I wanted to meet his friends. I chewed at my lip. I had been expecting him to ask me.

"Do you think they'll like me?" I asked, unsure. He chuckled, surprisingly.

"I'm sure they'll love you." So it was settled. We were going to meet Ben and Angela. They had a very good relationship with Edward, and if they didn't like me, they could easily convince him not to see me.

On the drive there, I could not relax. Edward seemed amused. He tried to calm me down, telling me everything was going to be alright, but after awhile he gave up, and turned the music on.

We were there, in fifteen minutes, pulling into the parking lot. I raced to get out before him. Edward jumped out from the car, and ran all the way around, and before he caught my door, I shut it. I smirked.

"Edward, when will you learn; I can get out of the car perfectly fine." Unfortunately I stumbled, catching myself on Edward's arm. I dared to look at Edward. He was smiling. I stood up, and walked to the nearest entrance.

"Bella, it's this way." Edward said.

"I know, I'm… just taking a short cut." I said. I heard Edward laugh, and he jogged over to my side.

"Come on." He said, tugging on my arm. I didn't fight him, as I melted from his touch.

We walked through a large door, and entered on a colorful carpet. It held blues, and yellows. I glanced around, seeing the beautiful lobby, and Edward steered me to the elevator. I stepped in, after him. He pressed a button, and we shot upward, into the silence. We stopped, but it didn't seem like it was our floor, considering Edward made no movements, to get out.

When the doors opened, a pregnant lady stepped in. She had thin features, and short dark hair. Recognition showed on her face.

"Edward, long time, no see." The short girl spoke.

"Alice, you were just over about two days ago." Edward responded.

"I know." Then she glanced at me, and gave me a warm smile. "Hi, my name is Alice. I live next door to Edward, Ben and Angela. You must be Bella. Edward has told a lot about you." I held out my hand, but she moved it aside and pulled me into a hug. "I mean _a lot_." Shocked as I was by her hug, I blushed from her words.

We parted and Alice placed her hands on her hips. "Well?" She said to Edward. Edward sighed.

"Would you like to join us?" Alice smiled.

"Sorry, I can't make it. Got a lot of stuff to do. It was great meeting you Bella." She smiled, and at that, the elevator rang, and she stepped out into the hallway. Edward gave a stressful sigh. I repressed a giggle, but couldn't help smiling.

"What?" Edward said confused.

"I like her." He rolled his eyes.

"Let's go." He said. I followed him to a door, and he opened it with a key I hadn't seen him pull out. The door opened swiftly to a large room, with leather black couches and a stair case off to the side.

"Wow." I looked around, seeing how the colors were so carefully put together. I couldn't help comparing my small apartment to his, loft. After two minutes, Edward told me to quit it, but I wanted just one more minute. He dragged me to a beige door, and it opened with just a push of his hand.

"They're here, don't do anything stupid." A girl's whispery voice came from the other side of the door.

"Hey I'm not the one you should be worried about. You know how to embarrass yourself perfectly fine." I heard a familiar voice respond.

"Ha!" The girl retorted. We walked in, and found Ben and my guess Angela. They staged a smile but when they thought I wasn't looking, I saw them glare at each other.

"Alright guys, let's eat."

We sat down on their couches, and ate hamburgers. I wondered if they had cooked the burgers outside, or inside, when I saw the large terrace, and answered my question myself. Just as I was finishing the last of my burger, I heard the front door burst open, and a recognizable voice came from down the hall.

"I'm here!" It was Alice, and she came into the living room holding a round cake, covered infancy chocolate frosting.

"Alice." Angela sighed.

"Mm, cake. I'll take that for you." Ben said.

"That's so sweet. Thank you Ben." Alice said handing it over.

"No problem. No problem at all." Ben said. Angela rolled her eyes.

"I'm going to help Ben put away the cake." Edward said following Ben. Alice laughed.

"That's fine, just as long as you save some for the girls, 'kay?" Alice chirped.

"Who said we'd eat it?" Ben said. Angela snorted. Edward laughed and they made their way into the kitchen. Alice laughed again, more to herself.

"They get funnier and funnier every year." Alice smiled. She turned to Angela. "So Angela, how you doing with Ben?" Angela's eyes fell to the floor, and I saw her cheeks turn a light shade of pink. She pulled her eyes from the ground, and sighed.

"It's been rough ever since Ben asked to marry me. I didn't know exactly where it came from, but he said that it was from some Target lady, or something. I mean who listens to Target people any way?" Oops. Way to go. Try to make a good relationship, and end up making it worse. Of course, all I said was one comment, and it was Ben's fault for reading to much into it. All I have to hope for now is that she doesn't ask me if it was me, because I don't think I'd be able to lie my way out.

"Yeah, Bella works at Target, so I've heard. Do you think you know who it would be?" I swallowed; here goes.

"Um, probably my friend, Rosalie." Rosalie gave no advice, whatsoever, but she talked to him at the same time I did, and, uh, well, close enough. Then Angela started laughing. Like almost hysterically. Alice was enjoying the whole show, and I wouldn't be surprised that if Angela didn't stop soon, Alice would go pop some popcorn, and sit down with her feet on the coffee table not missing a thing. Angela took breaths, trying to stop, but I was convinced she would be like that forever. She tried again, and her laughs slowed down.

"That makes more sense." Angela said, calming down. As if I wasn't confused before.

"Huh?" Angela smiled, and I thought she was going to start laughing again, but she stopped herself.

"Rosalie, she was the blonde, really tall?" I nodded my head. "Well, Edward said that Ben almost peed his pants; she scared him half to death. Oh man, it's hilarious." Angela and Alice laughed loudly. I wondered if the guy's could secretly hear us. "That's why I laughed because she must have scared him into asking me to marry him." Okay, whatever works. Unless of course she tells Ben and the whole thing bounces back to me. Oh how I hated lying.

"It's too bad that I can't use this to pick on Ben."

"Why?" Alice asked.

"Well I promised Edward not to tell Ben, or use it against him."

"I didn't." Alice pushed pass Angela, and made her quick feet to the kitchen. I shouldn't have underestimated Alice considering her large belly, because she got to the kitchen door pretty fast.

"Please don't." Angela said, giving her final plea. "Ben will hate me forever." Alice scowled.

"I hate it when you do that." Angela smiled.

"I know."

"Ugh, I'm hungry, I want cake." Alice opened the door and found half the cake already gone. "Guy's!" She grabbed the cake, while Ben tried to take one more piece.

"At least let Bella get some cake. I mean she is the reason I made it." I blushed when everyone turned to look at me.

"I'll just take a small—"

"Here you go!" Alice plopped on a big piece of cake.

"I don't know if I'd be able to eat this…" I said, staring at the cake. I almost thought I saw it grow bigger.

"I'll take it." Ben said, already grabbing for the plate. Alice jumped in front of me, and once again I was concerned for the baby.

"No. Bella wants to eat this, and you will not take this away from her." I felt my eyes grow big, and I was terribly frightened. "Right Bella?" Alice turned to me, and I put on my best smile.

"Yup." I went to go sit down, trying to figure out where to start. I stuck my fork into the chocolate frosting, and it went two inches down before I hit cake. Oh boy.

"So Bella, did you finally convince Edward to let us meet you?" Alice asked, looking over at Edward.

"Mm hmm." I said. More lying. Great.

"Yeah, we weren't aloud to meet you until we promised not to embarrass him in front of you." Angela said.

"Hey, I didn't get any compromise." Alice said, looking at Edward for an explanation.

"Well, I knew that you'd probably find a way to meet her, whether I brought her over or not, so I was going to hide you from her as long as possible." Alice gasped. Ben laughed, and Angela hit him on his arm. I was surprised how easy it was for them to talk about me as if I wasn't there. Maybe if I slowly made my way to the garbage can, I could slip in the cake, and make my way…

"Bella!" Alice said out of no where. I jumped out of my thoughts, and saw Alice staring at me. She laughed at my reaction. "What do you want to do?"

"What?" I asked. Maybe I should have listened to the conversation.

"We're splitting up—girls with girls, guys with guys—and we want you to choose where to go." Alice said all perky like.

"Huh?" But I wanted to spend the day with Edward. I looked at Edward, but he just shrugged. I guess standing up to Alice was scarier than I thought. I looked at Alice, who was standing with her arms folded, waiting for my answer. Who could possibly guess what would come out of her mouth if anyone was ever to disagree or say no to her. I shivered at the thought.

"Um, why don't you choose? I can't think of anything." Alice's finger went to her lips.

"Well, I guess we could go to the mall?" Alice asked.

"That's a surprise." Angela mumbled. Alice glared at Angela.

***We got to the mall, after a very strange ride in the car. Alice had peppered me with questions, and I answered them extremely careful, not wanting to give her anything that she could use against me.

"How did you two meet?" She asked me, and I blushed telling the story. Alice sighed. "I knew it, Edward was lying." Angela giggled. She asked me anything and everything personal between us, and I had tried to change the subject or be so appalled by her behavior that I refused to answer. She didn't buy it. So when she began telling stories about Edward when we were changing in the dressing rooms, I was surprised and relieved that she stopped asking me insane questions.

"Once when he was little, he ate a whole box of crayons and then tried to draw with his tongue." Alice sighed from laughing.

"You knew him when he was a kid?" I asked, trying on a green sun dress.

"Oh no, I got to chatting with his mom. She came to visit him not so long ago." I looked into the mirror and was horrified; the dress made my pale skin, paler than before. I pulled off the dress as quick as possible.

"Hey Bella did you try on that green dress I picked out for you?" Alice asked.

"Just now."

"Did you like it?"

"Um… Not really." No reason to say why.

"You didn't? I was really hoping you would." Alice said.

"Why's that?" I could almost see her getting all perky from the question.

"Well, I was going to throw a picnic for Edward's birthday. He doesn't like parties so much, so I thought if we go to the park, he won't be _completely_ mad at me. Andof course I wanted you to come."

"I could just wear a pair of jeans and, I don't know, a shirt?" Please don't make me wear a dress; please don't make me wear a dress.

"Oh no, no, no. You are wearing a dress." Angela snickered.

"Does Angela have to wear a dress?"

"No." Alice said quickly.

"Uh, then why do I have to?" I said.

"Well you won't sock me in the mouth. Angela will, if I even consider." I sulked. But I stopped, since no one was watching. I mean what was the point of sulking if nobody saw?

"So when's Edward's birthday?" I asked giving up on my normal outfit.

"I believe a week from now." Hmm, what am I going to buy him?

"Hey since we're here, do you guy's mind if we shop for Edward. When you're done of course."

"Oh, yes. I don't think I even bought him a card yet. I'm so used to skipping his birthday. Until Alice moved in next door, Edward has gone four or five years without a birthday." Angela said. So it was settled. I was going to wear a dress.

* * *

**A/N: Please review! I wanna hear what everyone thinks about this story and how it's goin'. And I want everyone to know I have not forgotten Emmett. Keep reading. Thanks everybody!**


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